London, generally viewed as an investment haven, has developed a housing bubble fueled by foreign investors and urban migration. The government’s Lend to Buy program has not helped in the way intended, but merely encouraged risk-taking in London’s mortgage market. The notoriously volatile London housing market has again prompted the dreaded ‘B’ word. The Office of […]

In the years following Bhutan’s political reform, the country’s economy and infrastructure still lag behind. Heavily dependent on India for aid, Bhutan must attract more foreign investment and strengthen its private sector. After King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck implemented the final phases of his father’s political reforms, Bhutan became one of the global community’s newest […]

Foreign investors and businesses will remain under pressure for another four years as Hungarian right-wing party, Fidesz, secures a legislative supermajority for a second-term. In the past term (2010-2014), Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, along with his right-wing party, Fidesz, has embarked on his policy agenda of market centralisation, economic statistism, and nationalism. Orban has enacted […]

In most Latin American countries, people are taking to the streets to protest against their governments for a variety of issues. If public services and governance indicators do not improve, the demonstrations could take a violent turn and impede economic growth. Since late January 2014, Venezuela has held the spotlight in Latin America. Fast forward […]

The situation in Ukraine is creating a dangerous standoff between Russia and the West, and Finland’s economy and security are suffering as a result. With a 1,300-km long border separating them, it is no surprise that a major priority for Finland is to maintain a sustainable relationship with Russia. At the same time, it is […]

Capital account convertibility has many advantages. But does it make sense to link up domestic financial markets tightly with international ones? As the euphoria of cheap and easy money wears off, emerging markets are grappling with withdrawal symptoms owing to gradual weaning off by the US Federal Reserve. The current argument for considerable capital account […]

On December 20th, Bulgaria’s Parliament passed a law banning offshore companies from 28 key economic sectors, from banking to insurance funds and media ownership. Although this act is likely to further deteriorate FDI performance in the short term, it will undoubtedly improve Bulgaria’s global investment climate in the long run. For the past seven months, tens […]

On June 20, 2013 protests erupted throughout Brazil drawing at least 250,000 people and eventually peaking with over a million participants. Many throughout the world and certainly within the Brazilian government were shocked by the seeming suddenness of the discontent. Taking place primarily in urban areas, the protests were initially sparked by a 7% increase […]

Nearly a month after oilfield strikes cut Libya’s production to just 10% of capacity, the Zintan tribal militia has re-opened a critical pipeline, carrying oil from two major western fields to Mediterranean ports outside of Tripoli. As a result, Libyan oil production has climbed to 263,000 barrels a day from just 100,000 earlier this week. […]

The U.S. Federal Reserve shocked the market on 18 September 2013. Ben Bernanke said the Fed would postpone tapering its USD 85 billion per month bond buying program possibly until next year. Sluggish growth forecasts, low inflation, persistent unemployment and fiscal fights are the main rationales behind the decision. The Fed is also likely to […]